Page 35 of Fighter
“The loft?” I asked.
A lopsided grin swept across her face and swiped my heart with it. For a breathless moment, I couldn't respond. Could barely take her in. I was caught up in a moment of pure Serafina, and my heart squeezed.
“Yes!” she cried, eyes dancing. “I got it. Probably thanks to you, so I wanted you to be the first to know.”
Light suffused her whole face. She seemed so far away from the girl that, just days ago, had been beaten around by her brother. My whole body eased under her joy.
“Congrats. That's fantastic. When will you move in?”
Her expression sobered slightly. “Tomorrow. They said it'll be move-in ready then, which is perfect. I still have stuff at Talmage's house, but . . .”
“Want me to go get it?”
My tone came out harder than I meant. It was supposed to be plain and innocuous but came out far too forceful. A flicker of something, maybe confusion, registered in her face before her usual laissez-faire attitude swept it away.
“Nah, but thank you. My parents will be here on Saturday and they'll take me. Mom called this morning and said that Talmage has been checking in with them every night and feels pretty awful about it.”
“He should,” I said.
Again, too forcefully. She ignored that.
“Anyway, I'm feeling a lot better and even more boxed in, so I'm going back to work today and tomorrow before my parents get here Saturday.”
My eyes naturally drifted to her cheek, which did look much better. The angry bruise had faded slightly, the edges more of a green than black now. It still set my teeth on edge to see it on her face, however.
“You're up for that?” I asked.
She flashed me her usual smile. “Of course. I'll just carry plates individually instead of trays. Should be fine.” She winked. “I practiced. Do you mind if Ava gets off the bus at the grocery store and drinks a milkshake at the Diner while I finish my shift? Dagny covered for me the past couple of days so I wanted to help her out. The shift ends at 3:00.”
“Of course.”
My quick response sent another smile through her. “Thanks. I appreciate that.”
I motioned to the phone. “I'll call her teacher now and let them know which bus stop to get off on.”
“Oh, even better. Thank you.”
“Sure. Anything else?”
She paused, and I wondered if she felt the same thing as me. The camaraderie of working together for something or someone. Doing it together instead of alone. Being able to help her make it work felt just as good to me. It was this sort of teamwork that felt like a combo coming together in all the right places. Sadie and I never had this, not for all the years we'd worked together.
“No, thanks. That's it. Have a good day!” She turned to go, then called over her shoulder, “Chicken cordon bleu and scalloped potatoes tonight, so save some appetite. It's a good one.”
Before my mouth could so much as water, she flashed me a thumbs up and was already gone.
11
Serafina
While I waited outside the Diner on what I hoped was a well-timed break, I tried to fight off the occasional surge of panic that the bus would forget to drop Ava off or she'd go to the wrong stop and be waiting for me somewhere dangerous. The cars that whizzed by on Main Street didn't make me feel any better. Finally, a bright yellow bus appeared on the road and rumbled my way.
“Sweet relief,” I muttered as Ava hopped off the bus. A bunch of other kids streamed out after her near the corner by the grocery store. I stood just outside the Diner and waved. She glanced over, saw me, waved back, and jogged my way.
“This is so cool!” she said as she grabbed my hand. “I get to go to the Diner!”
“I'm glad you think so,” I said. “Because everyone is really excited to meet you.”
The dumpy old place was loud when I brought her inside and set her at a special spot at the counter, a place where old men gathered to yell at the news and eat over-hard eggs in a veiled escape from their wives.
